In the British colony of Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania, Australia) the period 1839-53 witnessed an irrevocable change in the way in which prisoners (convicts) were managed. Known as the “probation system”, its introduction saw convicts newly transported from the corners of the Empire sequestered in government-run stations across the colony’s length and breadth. At these places, rigorous and uncompromising discipline, classificatory regimes, religious inculcation and trades-training would see the convict molded into working stock for the colony. In reality, such ideologies were to be undone by reactive planning, miscommunication and chronic under-resourcing, as well as helplessly undermined by unforeseen economic and political circumstances. Condemned as a failure, probation has nonetheless left an indelible mark on Tasmania’s landscape. A system only implemented in Van Diemen’s Land and Norfolk Island, it can rightfully claim a significance that extends well beyond these islands’ shores, playing a critical role in Britain’s globe-spanning penological enterprise. In this paper, we chart the course of probation, simultaneously outlining a framework for engaging with these landscapes where penology and labor was so closely intertwined. It will be illustrated with two examples drawn from the Tasman Peninsula: the Port Arthur penal station (1830-77) and Cascades probation station (1842-55). Using archeological and historical enquiry, the different impacts that probation had upon the penological and labor management of these places are examined, providing examples of how the significant landscapes of the probation-era can be examined.

中文翻译：

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罪犯缓刑制度的考古学：亚瑟港和喀斯喀特缓刑站的劳动景观，1839–55年

在范塔门省土地的英国殖民地（澳大利亚塔斯马尼亚州），1839-53年见证了囚犯（定罪者）管理方式的不可逆转的变化。被称为“缓刑制度”的新罪犯是从帝国的角落被新运来的定罪者隔离在整个殖民地的长度和广度的政府经营的车站中。在这些地方，严格而毫不妥协的纪律，分类制度，宗教教养和行业培训将使罪犯沦为殖民地的工作储备。实际上，被动的计划，错误的交流和长期的资源短缺将使这种意识形态消失，并且由于不可预见的经济和政治环境而无助地破坏这种意识形态。缓刑被指责为失败，但在塔斯马尼亚的风景上留下了不可磨灭的印记。该系统仅在范迪门的土地和诺福克岛上实施，可以合理地宣称其意义远远超出了这些岛的海岸，在英国遍布全球的刑事事业中发挥了关键作用。在本文中，我们列出了缓刑的过程，同时概述了将这些领域与刑法和劳动紧密联系在一起的环境。将以塔斯曼半岛的两个例子进行说明：亚瑟港刑事站（1830-77）和卡斯卡德斯缓刑站（1842-55）。通过考古和历史调查，考察了缓刑对这些地方的刑法和劳动管理的不同影响，提供了如何检验缓刑时代重要景观的实例。